1. Technology Field
The present invention relates to an error correcting method for correcting data stored in a rewritable non-volatile memory, and a memory controller and a memory storage system using the same.
2. Description of Related Art
Along with the widespread of digital cameras, cell phones, and MP3 in recently years, the consumers' demand to storage media has increased drastically. Rewritable non-volatile memory is one of the most adaptable memories for such battery-powered portable products due to its characteristics such as data non-volatility, low power consumption, small volume, and non-mechanical structure. A solid state drive (SSD) is a storage device which uses a rewritable non-volatile memory as its storage medium. Rewritable non-volatile memory has been broadly used for storing important personal data thanks to its small volume and large capacity. Thereby, the rewritable non-volatile memory industry has become a very important part of the electronic industry in recent years.
Because error bits may occur in the data stored in a rewritable non-volatile memory due to various factors (for example, memory cell leakages, program failures, and damages, etc), an error checking and correcting (ECC) circuit is usually configured in a memory storage system and an ECC code is generated for the stored data to ensure the accuracy of the data. However, data containing error bits cannot be corrected if the number of the error bits in the data is larger than the number of error bits that can be detected and corrected by the ECC circuit. As a result, data loss may be caused. Thereby, how to correct error bits, that cannot be corrected based on an ECC code, is one of the major subjects in the industry.
Nothing herein should be construed as an admission of knowledge in the prior art of any portion of the present invention. Furthermore, citation or identification of any document in this application is not an admission that such document is available as prior art to the present invention, or that any reference forms a part of the common general knowledge in the art.